Ancient Canaanite Religion Canaanite religion refers to the group of ancient Semitic religions practiced by the Canaanites living in the ancient Levant from at least the early Bronze Age through the first centuries of the Common Era. Canaanite religion was polytheistic and in some cases monolatristic. Canaanite religion describes the belief systems and ritual practices of the people living in...
Religious Cosmology Religious cosmology is an explanation of the origin, evolution, and eventual fate of the universe, from a religious perspective. This may include beliefs on origin in the form of a Creation Myth, subsequent evolution, current organizational form and nature, and eventual fate or destiny. There are various traditions...
What Are Information Sources In Religion? This article covers the answer to the question: “What are Information Sources in Religion?“ Much has been said on the issue of information sources. Some of the people who have commented on this issue have sometimes been restricted by their knowledge and/or faith, thus...
Buddhism And Hinduism Buddhism and Hinduism have common origins in the Ganges culture of northern India during the so-called “second urbanisation” around 500 BCE. They have shared parallel beliefs that have existed side by side, but also pronounced differences. Buddhism attained prominence in the Indian subcontinent as it was supported...
What Is The Origin of Religion? This article covers the answer to the question: “What is the origin of religion?“ Will Religion, Supposedly Developed by ”Primitive” People to Explain the Unknown, Eventually Become Unnecessary? Those who answer the above question with a resounding “yes” base their answer upon the following...
Man And Religion-2 This article covers the relationship between man and religion. At birth man has no conscious knowledge about himself or about the environment around him; nevertheless, he is not an alien but fitted for the world into which he is born. To begin with, his body is made...
Did Man Invent Religion? This article covers the answer to the question: “Did Man Invent Religion?“ The opponents of the religious life argue that religion was put together as a sort of outpouring of man’s feeling of powerlessness in the world or of his feelings of relief and gratitude when...
Christianity And Judaism This article covers the relationship between Christianity and Judaism. Christianity is rooted in Second Temple Judaism, but the two religions diverged in the first centuries of the Christian Era. Christianity emphasizes correct belief (or orthodoxy), focusing on the New Covenant as mediated through Jesus Christ, as recorded in the...
Religious Denomination A religious denomination is a subgroup within a religion that operates under a common name, tradition, and identity. The term refers to the various Christian denominations (for example, Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholic, and the many varieties of Protestantism). It is also used to describe the four major branches of Judaism (Orthodox, Conservative,...
Religious War A religious war or holy war (Latin: bellum sacrum) is a war primarily caused or justified by differences in religion. In the modern period, debates are common over the extent to which religious, economic, or ethnic aspects of a conflict predominate in a given war. According to the Encyclopedia of Wars, out...
Secularization In sociology, secularization (or secularisation) is the transformation of a society from close identification with religious values and institutions toward nonreligious values and secular institutions. The secularization thesis expresses to the idea that as societies progress, particularly through modernization and rationalization, religious authority diminishes in all aspects of social life and governance. The...
Civil Religion Civil religion, also referred to as a civic religion, is the implicit religious values of a nation, as expressed through public rituals, symbols (such as the national flag), and ceremonies on sacred days and at sacred places (such as monuments, battlefields, or national cemeteries). It is distinct from churches,...
Law And Religion Law and religion is the interdisciplinary study of relationships between law, especially public law, and religion. Vogue Magazine reports that during late 1900, a new law and religion approach emerged that progressively built its own contribution to religious studies. Over a dozen scholarly organizations and committees were formed by 1983, and...
Religious Studies Religious studies, also known as the study of religion, is an academic field devoted to research into religious beliefs, behaviors, and institutions. It describes, compares, interprets, and explains religion, emphasizing systematic, historically based, and cross-cultural perspectives. While theology attempts to understand the nature of transcendent or supernatural forces (such...
Happiness And Religion The relationship between religion and happiness has been the focus of much research. The present review provides a critical examination of this research and, in particular, focuses on conceptual and methodological concerns. The majority of studies report a positive association between measures of religion and happiness; however,...
Psychology Of Religion Strictly speaking, the psychology of religion consists of the application of psychological methods and interpretive frameworks to the diverse contents of religious traditions as well as to both religious and irreligious individuals. The extraordinary range of methods and frameworks can be helpfully summed up regarding the classic...
Religion And Schizophrenia The relationship between religion and schizophrenia is of particular interest to psychiatrists because of the similarities between religious experiences and psychotic episodes; religious experiences often involve auditory and/or visual hallucinations, and those with schizophrenia commonly report similar hallucinations, along with a variety of beliefs that are commonly...
Neuroscience Of Religion The neuroscience of religion, also known as neurotheology and as spiritual neuroscience, attempts to explain religious experience and behaviour in neuroscientific terms. It is the study of correlations of neural phenomena with subjective experiences of spirituality and hypotheses to explain these phenomena. This contrasts with the psychology of religion which studies mental, rather than neural, states. Proponents of...
Sigmund Freud’s Views on Religion Sigmund Freud’s views on religion are described in several of his books and essays. Freud regarded God as an illusion, based on the infantile need for a powerful father figure; religion, necessary to help us restrain violent impulses earlier in the development of civilization, can...
Theories About Religions This article covers theories about religions. Sociological and anthropological theories about religion (or theories of religion) generally attempt to explain the origin and function of religion These theories define what they present as universal characteristics of religious belief and practice. History From presocratic times, ancient authors advanced prescientific theories about religion. Herodotus (484 – 425 BCE) saw the gods...